Chapter Focus
Section 1 Constitutional Rights
Section 2 Freedom of Religion
Section 3 Freedom of Speech
Section 4 Freedom of the Press
Section 5 Freedom of Assembly
Chapter Assessment
The Fourteenth Amendment, which grants
citizenship and fundamental rights to African
Americans, was intended to protect the rights
of freed African Americans in the South. The
amendment was passed in June 1866, but
was not ratified by the states until July 1868.
The ratification process took so long because
many southern states were against equal
rights for African Americans. The federal
government encouraged ratification of the
Fourteenth Amendment by making it a
requirement for southern states that wanted to
be readmitted into the Union.
I. Constitutional Rights (pages 355–357)
A. The Constitution guarantees the basic rights
of United States citizens in the Bill of Rights.
B. Today, the Bill of Rights protects the rights of
individuals not only from actions of the
federal government but also from actions of
state and local governments.
C. The Bill of Rights was intended to protect
against the actions of the federal
government.
I. Constitutional Rights (pages 355–357)
D. A process called incorporation extended
the Bill of Rights to all levels of
government.
E. The Fourteenth Amendment, added in 1868,
paved the way for a major expansion of
individual rights by the due process clause,
which Supreme Court rulings have interpreted
as applying to all levels of government.
I. Constitutional Rights (pages 355–357)
F. The Supreme Court’s interpretation of the
Fourteenth Amendment nationalized the Bill
of Rights, thus giving citizens in every part of
the United States the same basic rights.
G. The incorporation of the Bill of Rights has
meant that, in practice, citizens who believe
state and local governments have denied
them their constitutional rights can take their
cases to federal courts, including the
Supreme Court.
I. Constitutional Rights (pages 355–357)
How was the Bill of Rights expanded so
that citizens in all parts of the United
States now enjoy the same basic rights?
By a process called incorporation.
Checking for Understanding
1. Main Idea Use a graphic organizer like the one
below to show the effects of incorporation on
the scope of the Bill of Rights.
Effect: The Bill of Rights grew to protect
citizens on the state as well as federal level.
Checking for Understanding
2. Define human rights, incorporation.
Human rights are fundamental freedoms.
Incorporation is a process that extended the
protections of the Bill of Rights against the
actions of state and local governments; the
process of setting up a legal community
under state law.
Checking for Understanding
3. Identify Bill of Rights, Fourteenth Amendment.
The Bill of Rights are the first ten amendments
of the Constitution that guarantee basic rights.
The Fourteenth Amendment defined
citizenship and laid the groundwork for making
individual rights national.
Checking for Understanding
4. Analyze the impact of the incorporation of the
Bill of Rights.
Incorporation extended the Bill of Rights to
protect citizens from all levels of government in
the United States.
Checking for Understanding
5. Cite the branch of government that has been
primarily responsible for the incorporation of the
Bill of Rights.
the judicial branch (the Supreme Court)
Critical Thinking
6. Making Inferences When it came time to
submit the new Constitution to the states for
ratification, why do you think state leaders
insisted on a national Bill of Rights?
They feared the potential power and abuses of
the national government.
Civic Participation Some people have
argued that all Americans should be
required to perform some type of
compulsory service. Write an editorial for a
newspaper either supporting or opposing
the idea of compulsory service.
Freedom of Religion
Key Terms
establishment clause, free exercise clause,
parochial school, secular, abridge, precedent
Find Out
• What is the difference between the
establishment clause and the free exercise
clause of the First Amendment?
• Why did the Court allow state-supported bus
transportation for parochial schools but ban their
use for field trips?
I. The Establishment Clause (pages 358–363)
A. This clause forbids Congress from passing
legislation to establish a single religion for
the United States.
B. The First Amendment’s guarantee of the free
exercise of religion forbids Congress from
passing laws limiting the practice of religion.
C. In practice, religion is important to public life
in the United States, and defining separation
between church and state has been difficult.
D. Establishment clause cases often involve
religion and education.
I. The Establishment Clause (pages 358–363)
E. Since the Everson ruling in 1947, the Court
has ruled some forms of state aid to
parochial schools constitutional but has
rejected others.
F. The Court has ruled state aid to parochial
schools constitutional:
1. if the aid has a clear nonreligious purpose;
2. if its main effect is to neither advance nor
inhibit religion;
3. if it avoids excessive government
entanglement with religion.
I. The Establishment Clause (pages 358–363)
G. The Court has allowed released time for
religious instruction during the school day if
the instruction is provided away from the
public schools.
H. The Court has struck down organized school
prayers but has allowed student religious
groups to hold meetings in public schools;
debate on the Court’s rulings involving
religion has been heated and sharply divided.
I. The Establishment Clause (pages 358–363)
I. The Court also has ruled that states
cannot ban the teaching of evolution in
public schools or require the teaching
of creationism.
J. Other interpretations of the establishment
clause have involved Christmas nativity
displays in public places and prayers at
government meetings.
I. The Establishment Clause (pages 358–363)
Why has the Supreme Court upheld some
kinds of state aid to parochial schools
and struck down other kinds of aid?
Because of its interpretation of the free
exercise and establishment clauses.
II. The Free Exercise Clause (pages 363–364)
A. The Supreme Court makes an important
distinction between religious belief
and practice.
B. Religious freedom cannot justify behavior or
practices that violate laws protecting the
health, safety, or morals of the community.
C. Amish parents could not be forced to send
their children to public school beyond eighth
grade; children of Jehovah’s Witnesses
could not be required to salute the flag in
the classroom.
Checking for Understanding
1. Main Idea Use a Venn diagram like the one
below to show the difference between the
establishment clause and the free exercise
clause of the First Amendment and what they
have in common.
establishment clause: no single church or set
of beliefs can predominate; both: wall of
separation between church and state; free
exercise clause: the right to hold any religious
beliefs is absolute
Checking for Understanding
3. Identify Equal Access Act.
The Equal Access Act allows public high
schools receiving federal funds to permit
student religious groups to hold meetings in
the school.
Checking for Understanding
4. What three-part test does the Supreme Court
use to determine if government aid to parochial
education is constitutional?
Aid must have a clearly secular purpose, must
neither advance nor inhibit religion, and must
not involve “excessive government
entanglement with religion.”
Freedom of Speech
Key Terms
pure speech, symbolic speech, seditious speech,
defamatory speech, slander, libel
Find Out
• How has the Supreme Court applied the principles
of “clear and present danger” and the bad
tendency doctrine in determining free speech?
• What speech is protected by the First
Amendment, and what speech is not protected?
Freedom of Speech
Understanding Concepts
Civil Liberties What is the intent of the preferred
position doctrine?
Section Objective
Explain how the First Amendment protects diversity of
opinion in the United States.
I. Types of Speech (pages 366–367)
A. Free speech includes verbal expression of
thought and opinion and symbolic speech,
using actions and symbols.
B. Because symbolic speech involves action, it
may be limited by government restrictions
that do not apply to free speech.
C. Government can regulate or forbid symbolic
speech if it falls within the constitutional
power of government, if it is narrowly drawn
to further a government interest not related
to suppressing speech, or if it leaves open
enough other channels of communication.
I. Types of Speech (pages 366–367)
Compare pure speech and symbolic
speech. In what ways are they similar? In
what ways are they different?
Pure speech is verbal expression; symbolic
speech is actions and symbols; both are
protected by the First Amendment.
II. Regulating Speech (pages 367–369)
A. The rights of free speech must be balanced
against the need to protect society.
B. Free speech may be limited when it clearly
presents an immediate danger, as in the
Schenck case (1919).
C. Free speech can be restricted even if it only
tends to lead to illegal action (the bad
tendency doctrine), given society’s need to
maintain public order.
II. Regulating Speech (pages 367–369)
D. The Court has ruled that the First
Amendment freedoms have a preferred
position because they are more fundamental
than other freedoms; laws limiting them are
presumed unconstitutional.
E. The Court has held that people are free to
speak out in support of political objectives;
however, free speech does not protect
those who advocate immediate and specific
acts of violence.
II. Regulating Speech (pages 367–369)
What three constitutional tests has the
Supreme Court used when deciding whether
limits on free speech are permissible?
“Clear and present danger” rule, bad tendency
doctrine, preferred position doctrine.
III. Other Speech Not Protected (pages 369–370)
A. The First Amendment does not protect
defamatory speech.
B. Defamatory speech includes slander, or
spoken words, and libel, or written words,
in false and damaging statements
about someone.
C. Public officials and public figures in general
are excluded from the right to sue for
slander in order to preserve an individual’s
right to criticize the government.
III. Other Speech Not Protected (pages 369–370)
D. Fighting words, or speech intended to
provoke violence, are not protected.
E. School authorities can regulate students’ free
speech at school events and during activities.
Checking for Understanding
1. Main Idea Use a Venn diagram like the one
shown here to explain the difference between
slander and libel.
Slander: spoken; Libel: written
Checking for Understanding
Match the term with the correct definition.
___
E pure speech
___
A symbolic
speech
A. the use of actions and symbols, in
addition to or instead of words, to
express opinions
B. false speech intended to damage a
person’s reputation
___
C seditious
speech
C. speech urging resistance to lawful
authority or advocating the overthrow of
the government
___
F defamatory
speech
D. false written or published statements
intended to damage a person’s
reputation
___
B slander
E. the verbal expression of thought and
opinion before an audience that has
chosen to listen
___
D libel
F. false speech that damages a person’s
good name, character, or reputation
Checking for Understanding
3. Identify “clear and present danger.”
The phrase “clear and present danger” refers
to a test judges frequently rely on to resolve the
conflict between free expression and the
demands of public safety.
Checking for Understanding
4. What three tests does the Supreme Court use
to set limits on free speech?
clear and present danger—speech presenting
immediate danger is not protected; bad
tendency—speech can be restricted even if it
only tends to lead to illegal action; preferred
position—speech should not be limited unless
absolutely necessary
Checking for Understanding
5. What types of speech does the First
Amendment not protect?
The First Amendment does not protect seditious
speech, defamatory speech, “fighting words,”
and certain types of student speech.
Critical Thinking
6. Making Comparisons How does freedom of
speech in the United States differ in wartime
and in peacetime? Refer to Supreme Court
decisions in your answer.
Speech considered seditious during war
[Schenck (1919) and O’Brien (1968)] was
protected in peacetime [Yates (1957) and
Brandenburg (1969)].
Freedom of the Press
Key Terms
prior restraint, sequester, gag order, shield laws
Find Out
• What is the Supreme Court’s opinion on
prior restraint?
• How has the Supreme Court ruled when the
presence of the media could affect a court trial?
I. Prior Restraint Forbidden
(pages 371–372)
A. Prior restraint, or censorship in advance, is
permissible only in cases directly related to
national security.
B. In Near v. Minnesota (1931) the Court ruled
that states could not stop the publication of a
newspaper because that action involved
prior restraint.
C. In the Pentagon Papers case in 1971, the
majority ruled that the government could
not stop the publication of secret
government documents because it
would involve prior restraint.
II. Fair Trials and Free Press (pages 372–374)
A. The First Amendment rights of a free press
sometimes conflict with the Sixth
Amendment’s guarantee of a fair trial.
B. After the Sheppard case (1966), the
Supreme Court described measures that
courts might take to restrain press coverage,
including moving the trial site, limiting the
number of reporters in the courtroom,
controlling reporters’ conduct in court,
keeping witnesses and jurors isolated from
the press, and sequestering the jury.
II. Fair Trials and Free Press (pages 372–374)
C. Gag orders barring the press from
publishing certain types of information are
illegal and are allowed only in unusual
circumstances.
D. After the Court ruled that reporters, like all
citizens, must testify in cases if called and
cannot refuse to reveal their sources of
information, some states passed shield
laws to protect the media from being
forced to disclose confidential information
in state courts.
III. Free Press Issues (pages 374–375)
A. The Founders viewed the press strictly as
printed material; electronic media had not
yet been invented.
B. Radio and television do not enjoy as much
freedom as other press media because they
use the public airways.
C. The Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) regulates radio and television. That
agency cannot censor broadcasts but may
set standards.
III. Free Press Issues (pages 374–375)
D. Movies and the Internet are protected by
free press guarantees.
E. Communities may regulate obscenity within
limits acceptable to the courts.
F. Advertising is commercial speech and
thus receives less protection than purely
political speech.
Checking for Understanding
Match the term with the correct definition.
___
D prior restraint
___
C sequester
___
A gag order
___
B shield laws
A. given by a judge barring the
press from publishing certain
types of information about a
pending court case
B. give reporters some means
of protection against being
forced to disclose
confidential information or
sources in state courts
C. to keep isolated
D. government censorship of
information before it is
published or broadcast
Checking for Understanding
3. Identify Federal Communications Commission.
The Federal Communications Commission is
a government agency that regulates the actions
of radio and broadcast television.
Checking for Understanding
4. When can the government exercise prior
restraint on the press?
They can exercise prior restraint only in those
cases relating directly to national security.
Checking for Understanding
5. What measures may a court take to restrain
press coverage in the interest of a fair trial?
Courts may move or delay the trial to reduce
pretrial publicity, limit the number of reporters in
the courtroom or place strict controls on their
conduct, isolate witnesses and jurors from the
press, and sequester the jury.
Freedom of Assembly
Key Terms
picketing, Holocaust, heckler’s veto
Find Out
• What are the limits on public assembly?
• What constitutional protections are applied to
demonstrations by unpopular groups, or to those
who might incite violence?
Freedom of Assembly
Understanding Concepts
Civil Liberties Why is freedom of assembly subject
to greater regulation than freedom of speech?
Section Objective
Explain the freedoms and restrictions placed by the
First Amendment upon gatherings of people.
Burning an American flag during a
demonstration protesting some action or
policy of the government may be unpopular,
but it is not illegal. Why? The Supreme
Court has ruled that flag burning is protected
by the First Amendment because it is
symbolic speech.
I. Protecting Freedom of Assembly
(pages 376–378)
A. Freedom of assembly is a right closely
related to freedom of speech.
B. The Supreme Court, in DeJonge v. Oregon
(1937), ruled that free assembly is as
important as free press and free speech and
that free assembly is protected from state
and local governments.
C. Freedom of assembly includes the right to
parade and hold demonstrations in public
places, but those who organize the events
must get a permit.
I. Protecting Freedom of Assembly
(pages 376–378)
D. Demonstrations at public facilities may
be limited.
E. Demonstrations are not allowed on private
property, such as shopping malls and
abortion clinics, because they interfere with
property rights.
I. Protecting Freedom of Assembly
(pages 376–378)
When might freedom of assembly conflict
with the public’s right to order and safety,
and which do you think is more important?
Answers will vary. For examples of this
conflict see text pages 376–377.
II. Public Assembly and Disorder (pages 378–380)
A. When people assemble to advocate
unpopular causes, police may have difficulty
protecting them from violence and disorder.
B. The Nazi party march in Skokie, Illinois, in
1977 illustrated the heckler’s veto: the
public vetoes the rights of free speech and
assembly of an unpopular group.
C. Police may disperse a demonstration in
order to keep the peace, but in the
Gregory case (1969), the Court upheld
the right of assembly by persons
peacefully demonstrating in support of
an unpopular cause.
II. Public Assembly and Disorder (pages 378–380)
How effective do you think the heckler’s veto
would be in your community?
Answers will vary. Heckler’s veto is defined
on text page 379.
III. Protection for Labor Picketing (pages 380–382)
A. Labor picketing is different from other
demonstrations; it seeks to persuade
customers not to deal with a business whose
workers are on strike.
B. Before 1940 the Supreme Court supported
restraints on labor picketing, but in that year
it ruled that picketing was a form of free
speech; in the years since, forms of
picketing have been limited in several
key rulings.
III. Protection for Labor Picketing (pages 380–382)
Compare labor picketing with other kinds of
demonstrations. In what ways are they the
same and different?
Picketing is a form of free speech, but it
includes a picket line which may deprive a
business of customers or workers.
IV. Freedom of Association (page 382)
A. The right of free assembly includes the
right of free association, including joining
a political party, interest group, or
other organization.
B. Membership in groups advocating the use of
force to overthrow the government, the Court
has ruled, is not illegal; when members of
such groups actually prepare to use such
force, however, the acts are punishable.
IV. Freedom of Association (page 382)
How did the Supreme Court apply the clear
and present danger doctrine to membership
in subversive groups?
In the 1950s the Court upheld convictions
against Communist Party members. Later it
ruled that merely advocating a belief did not
show a “clear and present danger.”
Checking for Understanding
1. Main Idea Use a graphic organizer like the one
below to identify two reasons the right to
assemble is important to preserve in a
democracy and two reasons it can be limited.
to preserve: it allows political parties and interest
groups to exist, as well as organized dissent
against the government; to limit: local
governments may require permits for organized
parades and demonstrations, and restrictions
may be set if the right of assembly clashes with
the rights of other people.
Checking for Understanding
2. Define picketing, Holocaust, heckler's veto.
Picketing is patrolling an establishment to
convince workers and the public not to enter it.
The Holocaust was the mass extermination of
Jews and other groups by the Nazis during
World War II.
The heckler’s veto refers to the public veto of
free speech and assembly rights of unpopular
groups by claiming demonstrations will result
in violence.
Checking for Understanding
3. Identify clear and present danger doctrine.
The clear and present danger doctrine was
a major issue when the government began to
arrest and convict accused subversives,
primarily Communist Party members during
the 1950s.
Checking for Understanding
4. What two principles were established by the
DeJonge decision?
The right of assembly is as important as free
speech; the Fourteenth Amendment protects
the right of assembly from infringement by state
and local governments.
Critical Thinking
5. Checking Consistency Should more
restrictions apply if a parade supports an
unpopular cause? Support your answer.
Answers may vary but should balance the rights
of assembly with the potential for violence.
Civil Liberties Imagine that you are the
mayor of a town where a citizen is
planning a rally to protest the
government’s environmental policies.
Write a letter to the city council
explaining the constitutional issues and
the public welfare concerns that they
should consider before allowing the rally.
Reviewing Key Terms
From the following list, choose the term that fits each situation described.
A. shield laws
B. pure speech
C. prior restraint
D. libel
E. heckler’s veto
F. seditious speech
G. picketing
H. symbolic speech
___
E 1. Spectators threaten violence against an unpopular
demonstration and, in order to keep peace, authorities
break up the demonstration.
___
C 2. A government official tells a reporter that she cannot
publish a story that might compromise national
security.
___
H 3. A group burns an American flag to show its objection
to a government policy.
___
D 4. A newspaper publishes an untrue story that damages
the reputation of a local resident.
Reviewing Key Terms
From the following list, choose the term that fits each situation described.
A. shield laws
B. pure speech
C. prior restraint
D. libel
E. heckler’s veto
F. seditious speech
G. picketing
H. symbolic speech
___
G 5. Animal rights activists parade outside a store that sells
furs and attempt to convince customers not to enter
the establishment.
___
F 6. An individual urges a group to fight the police rather
than obey a police order to disperse.
___
B 7. A person stands in front of a group and states her
opinion on an issue.
___
A 8. A reporter is protected against being forced to
disclose a source of information in court.
Recalling Facts
1. List four freedoms the First Amendment protects.
It protects freedom of religion, freedom of
speech, freedom of assembly, and freedom of
the press.
2. List four examples of how religion remains part
of government.
Possible answers: Most government officials
take their oaths of office in the name of God.
The nation’s coins carry the motto “In God We
Trust.” The Pledge of Allegiance contains the
phrase “one nation under God.” Daily sessions
of Congress open with a prayer.
Recalling Facts
3. Identify kinds of speech the First Amendment
protects and kinds it does not protect.
It protects pure speech and symbolic speech. It
does not protect seditious speech, defamatory
speech, or “fighting words.”
4. How might freedom of the press interfere with
an individual’s right to a fair trial?
The press might print or broadcast information
that might influence witnesses’ testimony,
prejudice jurors or prospective jurors, or
otherwise influence the trial’s outcome.
Recalling Facts
5. Why may government require that groups first
obtain permits to parade or demonstrate?
Permits are required so that authorities can
make arrangements for the public’s welfare,
safety, and protection.
Understanding Concepts
1. Civic Participation Analyze the Supreme
Court’s decision in Gitlow v. New York. How did it
support the intent of the Fourteenth Amendment
to define citizenship and civic participation?
Possible answers: The Court’s decision that
freedom of speech is a basic, undeniable right
promotes an atmosphere in which citizens can
speak their minds about issues that matter to
them, but cannot advocate the violent overthrow
of the government. The ruling determined that
no state government could deny basic rights
and liberties to any person.
Understanding Concepts
2. Civil Liberties Why did the court treat a
Minneapolis newspaper differently than a
Hazelwood school newspaper?
Answers may vary, but students should note
that school officials are responsible for activities
that take place on school property and may
regulate school curriculum and publications,
whereas the Minneapolis newspaper was
privately published and free from government
censorship and prior restraint.
Critical Thinking
1. Demonstrating Reasoned Judgment Should
the First Amendment protect those who publish
stolen government documents? Explain.
Answers will vary, but should include references
to Supreme Court decisions on this issue, such
as the Pentagon Papers case. Students should
attempt to balance the interests of the national
security and government suppression of
embarrassing information.
Critical Thinking
2. Recognizing Ideologies The Court ruled out
laws requiring the teaching of creationism, but
not the teaching of creationism itself. Does
teaching creationism in public schools serve to
“endorse a particular religious doctrine”? Explain.
Answers will vary, but should address questions
such as the following: Can an individual teacher
present creationism objectively? If creationism
is taught, is it presented as a specific religious
doctrine? What evidence is presented?
Critical Thinking
3. Making Comparisons Use a graphic organizer
like the one below to compare the three tests for
limiting seditious speech.
relaxes limits: preferred position;
sets standard: clear and present danger;
toughens limits: bad tendency.
3) Answers will vary.
2) the Civil War and the emancipation of enslaved African Americans
1) in 1833
1) less than one-fourth
2) 2.8%
3) Answers will vary.
1) Congress passed the Flag Protection Act of 1989.
2) It is considered to be a legal symbolic speech.
3) Answers will vary.
1) One possibility is that pretrial publicity may make it difficult to
find jurors who have not already formed an opinion.
2) Answers will vary.
3) Answers will vary.
Depicting Rights and Freedoms Many events
discussed in this chapter are filled with drama. Select one
such moment to depict artistically. Here are a few ideas:
• James Madison introducing to Congress the set of
amendments that became the Bill of Rights
• students or parents demonstrating against a Court ruling
(as in school prayer or Bible-study case)
• a student newspaper staff learning that their publication
is being censored
• reporters competing for interviews with jury members
from a high-profile trial
Be prepared to explain your choice. Prepare a classroom
display of the individual works.